Breaking News

Stadium for Cornwall moves a step closer

Published
by
Sarah Yeoman at 12:27pm 9th December 2019.
(Updated at 3:10pm 9th December 2019)

The Stadium for Cornwall has moved a step closer, as land has been transferred to the partners.

That means design work can start on the development at Langarth, Threemilestone.

The plan is for it to be finished by summer 2022 and fundraising is due to start before this Christmas.

It still has not been confirmed how much the stadium will cost in total but bosses reckon it will be over the original £14 million estimate.

"I am delighted to say that we have completed all documentation requirements on the transfer of the land from INOX via the Council to the Cornish Pirates.

"This now means that we can proceed with the design and preparation of the construction documentation for the stadium and in due course go out to tender with a view to commencing construction on the designated site in time for completion in summer 2022.

"There are no more hurdles to cross!

"At the same time, we can also now start fundraising in earnest, commencing with the launch of crowdfunding in time for Christmas.

"This is excellent news and I'm indebted to Rob Saltmarsh and Nigel Blackler and Phil Mason from the Council for listening to my almost continuous arguments for letting us have the land prior to them completing the legals on their transaction with INOX for the purchase of the large tracts of development land abutting the stadium.

"We won't know the final cost of the Stadium until such time as we have completed our tendering procedures but doubtless it will have gone up from the £14 million envisaged two years ago."

Dicky Evans, Cornish Pirates

Bosses say the stadium site is across three pieces of land, totalling around 12 acres.

The plan is to build a hotel on the site, which will overlook the playing surface.

"Moving on, we are ready to let the dogs loose on construction of the Stadium and it would hold no fears for myself were we to take a government grant, secured over 25 years alongside the council grant, to enable construction without any borrowings.

"We also have other fish to fry, as during the last 18 months we have been busy ensuring that the Stadium is viable and in this respect we have pinpointed three pieces of land totalling about 12 acres of land (thereby doubling the size of the Stadium area) - 10 acres in two tranches of land which we can develop with investors and another piece that allows us to move the Stadium pitch west and south of its original siting.

"This allows a hotel to be constructed on the Stadium site overlooking the actual playing surface.

"All of these developments will make the Stadium truly iconic and we are talking to investors at this time."